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One set of lights at North and Linden streets are stuck on flashing yellow. The city hopes to have that fixed by Wednesay.

Pittsfield Officials Warn of Malfunctioning Light at North, Linden

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The traffic light at the intersection of Linden and North streets has been flashing yellow signals since Monday. 

And it will take the manufacturer of the traffic light to fix the issue.

"It doesn't happen often that we have to call the manufacturer," Commissioner of Public Services and Utilities Ricardo Morales said.

Morales is urging motorists to treat the flashing light as a stop sign — stop at the intersection and when it is safe to go, to proceed with caution.

The city has three steps of troubleshooting these types of issues. First there were attempts to fix the light before calling a called a contractor onto the site. The contractor was able to isolate some issues and rule out potential causes for the flashing, but ultimately could not get it fixed. Then the manufacturer was called.

"It's a bit unusual," Morales said. "[Contractors] are pretty well versed in what they do, so when that happened that's when we called the manufacturer and had them scheduled to come in and basically they fabricate that piece of equipment so they can do a deep dive into and fix the problem."

As of right now, Morales plans to have the manufacturer arrive on the scene Wednesday and, hopefully, have the light fixed within a few hours. For the duration of the repairs, there will be a police detail to direct traffic.

Witnesses reported a small accident between two trucks around 3:30 p.m. at that intersection. Those involved were able to pull into the parking lot behind Rent A Center to get out of traffic and exchange information. Police reported there was no major damage and no one was injured.

At the same time, Pittsfield is in the midst of a snowstorm that expects to accumulate up to 6 inches, causing slippery roads and reduced visibility. Because of this, drivers should proceed with extra precaution.



 


Tags: traffic light,   

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Hinsdale Day-Care Opening New PreK Classroom

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

Tina Karch shifted her home-run day care to the former sports academy in 2003, expanding the number of children and staff. The preK will offer more educational programming to prepare her charges for kindergarten. 
HINSDALE, Mass. — Tina's Kiddie Junction is expanding its day-care program to add a new prekindergarten class this month. 
 
Owner and educator Tina Karch said the preK was a step above preschool in offering more educational programming. 
 
"PreK is like the new, honestly, first grade, and then preschool is like new kindergarten now," she said. "It's more getting ready for school. Making sure they have all their skills."
 
Karch has been teaching and caring for children for 30 years, since opening her initial day-care in 1996 and running one out of her home Dalton.
 
She opened the Hinsdale center in November 2023 with classrooms serving preschool, infant and toddler, and toddler. The new preK classroom has been under construction and will open July 14 with teacher Charity Bergeron.
 
Karch said it has always been her dream to take care of children.
 
"I just want to pass on the learning and make it a happy, enjoyable experience, because a lot of the kids that I've taken care of when they were little remember all of the wonderful things I've done with them," she said. "And it's nice to know that I gave them a foundation of a good provider, some good learning."
 
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